VISUAL COMFORT PROBABILITY

LUMENS vs. FOOTCANDLES

footcandles delivered

energybank's designs will always prioritize the optimization of the light engine as a system that delivers maximum footcandles without compromising performance or longevity.

When it comes to fixture performance:

footcandles delivered are more important than lumens produced.

Knowing the difference makes all the difference.

Two major terms are often used in the process of defining the brightness of a light fixture:

FOOTCANDLES and LUMENS

The amount of lumens produced at a source does not directly correspond with the amount of footcandles delivered.

LUMENS:

how bright it is at the source. Visible light emitted at the source. (Glare) Lumens does not accurately reflect the amount of light that actually reaches the eye of an observer.

FOOTCANDLES:

how much light falls a certain distance away as usable light on the intended surface. The amount of working light perceived at the work surface.

As lighting technology has evolved, it is more important to understand a fixture's footcandle output rather than its lumen output.

Every lighting fixture design has unique light distribution characteristics. The distinction between footcandles delivered and lumens produced is especially important with LED fixtures, which are capable of delivering more directed light than legacy sources.

Fixture efficacy was traditionally defined as lumens/watt. How many lumens of light were produced for each watt consumed.

However! Lumens per watt CAN NOT give us the overall effectiveness of a fixture to deliver usable light in a specific application.

Light is for seeing

What customers are seeking in a successful lighting project is simply to maximize the amount of visible light that falls on a surface as usable light (footcandles delivered).